Delmarva brews flow at Seacrets' second Love on Tap
On a sunny Saturday in Ocean City, hundreds of eager tasters, armed with a pint glass, poured into Seacrets, hoping to get a taste the best of what local brewers had to offer.
This was the second annual Love on Tap; an event celebrating all that is Delmarva beer. 15 local breweries were present, with each offering up to two unique brews for tasters. The event capped off FeBREWary, Maryland's month long craft beer celebration declared official by Gov. Larry Hogan on Friday, Feb. 3.
Among the prestigious roster were a chocolate strawberry stout from Ocean City's own Backshore Brewing, a boozy 10.5 percent alcohol Pecan Pie Brown Ale from Salisbury's Evolution Brewing and a chocolate-forward Oyster Stout from up-and-coming brewery Big Oyster Brewing of Rehoboth Beach.
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Organized by Shore Craft Beer, a guide to Delmarva's blooming craft beer scene, the event shows a culture that has only grown upward, owner Ann McGinnis-Hillier said.
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"What makes the Eastern Shore special is that, no matter what brewery you go to, you'll always find something you like," McGinnis-Hillier said. "We've kind of distinguished ourselves in that way, as a destination for truly world-class beer."
McGinnis-Hillier said that what makes Love on Tap special is a focus on beers only produced on the Delmarva Peninsula.
"FeBREWary is a statewide event, of course, but here, we want to only show beers on the peninsula, and show what makes this culture so unique," McGinnis-Hillier.
For local brewers, the festival has been a chance to showcase their wares, as well as to meet with some of the other passionate regional brewers, all in one of the Eastern Shore's most signature settings.
"The first time we did this, it was around Valentine's Day," said Eric Camper, head brewer at Tall Tales brewery. "Seacrets had never had an event really like this, and really, what better venue can you ask for this?"
The growing trend hasn't been lost on Delmarva residents.
"The first year, we had 700 people total, 200 tickets we sold the day of," Tony Russo, editor at Shore Craft, said. "This year, we've had 800 people, and were sold out two days before the event. It's fantastic, you always want to sell out in advance."
"We've just been seeing it blow up," said Randee Arnold of Dover's Old Dominion Brewing. "It's all been really exciting, there's a great market here and it's amazing to see how much it's caught on."
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The booming business is not just the purveyor of suds, but the rest of the community as whole. Jack "Shack" Schachter of Annapolis-based AC Beverage, a company which installs draft systems in bars, said business has been growing ever since the craft beer trend took off.
"It's just exploded," Schachter said. "We love it, it's great for business, ever since Dogfish Head took off, we've only seen the business grow. And what's not to like? It's just good people making good beers."
Denny Mogan of Evolution said that the festival brought together the community, one that is tight-knit and held together by a mutual love for barley and hops.
"This is just a great way to celebrate beer, and to bring together our community," Mogan said.
Craft beer is a business which seems to have perpetual growth. Sales for craft beer rose 12.8 percent nationally in 2015, even while total beer sales dropped .2 percent, according to the Brewer's Association. The endless life of the craft beer industry, Camper said, is one that is based solely on pure passion.
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"I went to school for brewing, it's something I love, it's what I'm passionate about," Camper said. "And, look around here, I'm not alone. You can go up to any brewer in this room and I can guarantee they'll tell you there's nothing in the world they'd rather be doing."